


I Am Aster Universe

by Lucigoosey_The_Lightbringer



Series: Renegades (Steven Universe: Homeworld AU) [22]
Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Aster Universe Has PTSD - Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Drabble, Dreams, Dreams and Nightmares, Gen, I Am My Mom Gone Wrong, Light Angst, Renegades Steven Universe AU, Steven Universe's Brother, Visions in dreams, in which dreams are sneak peeks into alternate universes, kinda toys with an idea my partner and i had, so this is a shoutout to my other fic change my mind
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-28
Updated: 2021-01-28
Packaged: 2021-03-13 17:07:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 587
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29032170
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lucigoosey_The_Lightbringer/pseuds/Lucigoosey_The_Lightbringer
Summary: He dreamed he was side by side with his human half, except different. In his dreams, Steven's hair was shorter, and the scars that marred so much of his body were gone.| Post-IASU (I Am Steven Universe.)
Relationships: Steven Universe & Aster Universe
Series: Renegades (Steven Universe: Homeworld AU) [22]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1918204
Comments: 18
Kudos: 23





	I Am Aster Universe

His dreams were flickers and flashes, lights and static and pixels and glitches.

Perhaps it was because he wasn't supposed to dream. Or maybe all of his dreams felt like this because he was disconnected from Steven. Whatever the case, each one felt wrong, twisted. And none of them made any sort of sense; most of them were jumbled, jumping from one scene to another in the blink of an eye. Some of them he didn't even remember. He dreamed of skyscrapers, airplanes, clouds. He dreamed of the Earth's sun, bright and glittering down across his… Steven's… _their_ skin. He dreamed he was side by side with his human half, except different. In his dreams, Steven's hair was shorter, and the scars that marred so much of his body were gone. He looked tired but happy, greeting him with a holler whenever he walked into a house he didn't recognize. In his dreams, Steven called him 'Aster', and 'Azzy', and 'brother'.

_(Then he dreamed of a dark place, glowing pink tiles beneath his feet and his hands locked in bubbles, chained to the floor. He dreamed of being trapped, struggling to escape, to break free. He dreamed of butterflies all around him, buzzing around him carelessly, burrowing into his hair and fluttering against his neck and skin as they landed only to take off, leaving him alone again.)_

He dreamed of a flower being presented to him in that very place, Steven's wide smile managing to bring some light to the darkness, managing to calm some of the fear and confusion that flushed through his chest at the thought of being alone and trapped there all by himself.

_(He dreamed of words he knew were wrong, but so right._

" _Aster," Steven told him, with a smile on his face. "They represent sensitivity and love.")_

He dreamed…

_("My twin brother, 'Aster Universe'?")_

He dreamed he was Aster Universe.

When he woke, it was with a start. He'd never slept before; he'd never woken up either. Steven was still beside him, sprawled out on his stomach with his head cradled in his arms, his face turned away from him, toward where the window was. The gem stared for a moment, mouth open, breathing in lungfuls of the hot, stifled air around them, then looked toward the window himself, wide eyes rapidly flicking back and forth across the darkness that rested beyond it. A thrill of terror pierced his heart, like a needle to a balloon, as he thought back to that _place_. Something cold pricked at the back of his neck, a painful feeling making his stomach twist.

He rested a hand over his stomach, covering his half of the gem, and looked down.

With his heart in his throat, he whispered, "Aster."

Again and again, he tested the words, the _name_ , in his head. _Aster Universe, Aster Universe, Aster Universe._ Over and over again, it proved to make his heart flutter and flip in a million different ways, until the terror had completely subsided into something almost akin to awe.

What a strange dream that had been. But he quite liked that name.

"Aster Universe," he murmured, falling silent again when Steven shifted beside him. He gazed at him for a moment, waiting for him to go still again before he looked back down at his hands.

"Aster," he mumbled, a little quieter. "... I am Aster Universe." Even quieter, he said, "I am _me_."

Despite himself, he laughed. Quietly, of course.

He was Aster Universe.

He was _him._


End file.
